Steering a course towards eudaimonia: the effects of sail training on well-being and character

Sail training voyages have been shown to enhance self-constructs and inter-personal and intra-personal skills. It is suggested through this case-study approach with twelve 14 year-old crew participants that such an experience contributes towards well-being and character development in emerging adulthood. An audit of voyage-based experiences generated an inventory of 58 authentic activities and participants completed questionnaires immediately post-voyage (T¹) and six months later (T²) to rate the significance of each activity. The highest rated activities reflected Maslow’s lower order of needs with a two-thirds correspondence at T¹ and T². Helming (or steering the vessel) was ranked as the most significant activity by participants in both time periods, although participants had questioned their ability to do this before the voyage. Helming is suggested to activate cognitive, psychomotor and affective domains in an authentic adventure education experience that contributes to hedonic well-being and may provide a course towards eudaimonia.     

Efficacy of a Reading Intervention for Middle School Students Identified with Learning Disabilities

This experimental study reports findings on the effects from a year-long reading intervention providing daily, 50-minute sessions to middle-school students with identified learning disabilities (n = 65) compared with similar students who did not receive the reading intervention (n = 55). All students continued to receive their special education services as provided by the school. Results indicated statistically significant findings favoring the treatment group for sight word reading fluency following intervention. Small effects were found for phonemic decoding fluency and passage comprehension. No other statistically significant differences were noted between groups. The findings suggest that while gains on word reading fluency resulted from the additional reading treatment, accelerating the reading performance of students identified with learning disabilities may be unlikely to result from a one-year, daily intervention provided to students in groups of 10-15.     

Developing and sustaining provision for children with motor skills difficulties in schools: the role of educational psychologists

The current paper outlines a three-year action research project with 39 schools in one inner city local authority. A local need to improve provision for children with motor skills difficulties resulted in a team of educational psychologists (EPs) and specialist teachers developing the Manchester Motor Skills Intervention (MMSI), which is a flexible package of support for primary schools. Support provided ranged from staff training and resources aimed to improve universal provision through to motor skills groups for targeted children. A mixed method evaluation was undertaken which aimed to establish which aspects of the MMSI schools found most useful and whether the programme was sustainable. The evaluation involved interviews at the end of the two-year project and school provision audits one year after the project had ceased. Participants valued the contribution of the research team to the development of a targeted intervention programme and the provision of ongoing support, while evidence suggests that the whole-school element of the MMSI requires further development. Some barriers and facilitators to sustainability are identified and discussed.     

Specific language impairment, theory of mind, and visual perspective taking: evidence for simulation theory and the developmental role of language

Recent research has found that the acquisition of theory of mind (ToM) is delayed in children with specific language impairment (SLI). The present study used a battery of ToM and visual perspective taking (VPT) tasks to investigate whether the delayed acquisition of ToM in children with SLI is associated with delayed VPT development. Harris' (1992, 1996) simulation theory predicts that the development of VPT will be delayed. Participants were 20 children with SLI (M=62.9 months) and 20 typically developing children (M=61.2 months) who were matched for nonverbal ability, gender, and age. The results supported Harris' theory and a role for language in ToM and VPT development.     

An evaluation of intensive intervention for students with persistent reading difficulties

To evaluate the effects of an intensive tertiary reading intervention, 27 students with severe reading difficulties and disabilities, 14 of whom had demonstrated an inadequate response to 1-2 tiers of prior reading instruction, received a 16-week intervention package involving decoding and fluency skills. The decoding intervention was provided for 2 hours per day for 8 weeks and was based on the Phono-Graphix program. The fluency intervention followed the decoding intervention and involved 1 hour of daily instruction for 8 weeks based on the Read Naturally program. The 16-week intervention resulted in significant improvement in reading decoding, fluency, and comprehension. Although individual responses to the intervention were variable, 12 of the 27 students showed a significant response to these interventions. Students who had participated in previous Tier 1 plus Tier 2 interventions but remained impaired had a stronger response to intervention in the current study than students who had previously participated only in Tier 1 intervention and students who had not received prior intervention outside of special education.     

The relative effects of group size on reading progress of older students with reading difficulties

This study reports findings on the relative effects from a yearlong secondary intervention contrasting large-group, small-group, and school-provided interventions emphasizing word study, vocabulary development, fluency, and comprehension with seventh- and eighth-graders with reading difficulties. Findings indicate that few statistically significant results or clinically significant gains were associated with group size or intervention. Findings also indicate that a significant acceleration of reading outcomes for seventh- and eighth-graders from high-poverty schools is unlikely to result from a 50 min daily class. Instead, the findings indicate, achieving this outcome will require more comprehensive models including more extensive intervention (e.g., more time, even smaller groups), interventions that are longer in duration (multiple years), and interventions that vary in emphasis based on specific students’ needs (e.g., increased focus on comprehension or word study).     

Is identification with school the key component in the ‘Black Box’ of education outcomes? Evidence from a randomized experiment

In this paper, we follow up the important class size reduction randomized experiment in Tennessee in the mid 1980s (Project STAR) to attempt to further understand the long-lasting influences of early education interventions. While STAR led to large test score benefits during the intervention, these benefits quickly faded at its conclusion. However, research has recently shown that the STAR experiment led to long term benefits, including increases in college entrance exams participation (ACT/SAT), especially for minority students. We collect new follow up data on high school participation in extracurricular activities to examine whether (1) STAR increased participation in high school activities and (2) whether this increase in participation in high school is the explanation behind the long term benefits of the intervention. We find suggestive evidence that STAR did indeed increase some aspects of high school participation, including scholastic honors and participation in sports, especially for minority students. In contrast, we find little evidence that this increase in participation is the mechanism that has conferred higher rates of college-going to the STAR students.     

The effect of torsional shoe sole stiffness on knee moment and gross efficiency in cycling

Altering torsional stiffness of cycling shoe soles may be a novel approach to reducing knee joint moments and overuse injuries during cycling. We set out to determine if the magnitude of three-dimensional knee moments were different between cycling shoe soles with different torsional stiffnesses. Eight trained male cyclists cycled at 90% lactate threshold power output in one of two cycling shoe conditions in a randomized crossover design. The shoe sole was considered torsionally flexible (FLEX) compared to a relatively stiffer (STIFF) sole. Gross efficiency (GE) and knee joint moments were quantified. No significant effect of shoe condition was seen in GE (21.4 ± 1.1% and 20.9 ± 1.6% for FLEX and STIFF, respectively, P = 0.12), nor in three-dimensional knee moments. 4 of the 8 subjects had reduced knee moments in at least 2 of the 3 moment directions. These “responders” were significantly shorter (1.73 ± 0.02 m vs 1.81 ± 0.04 m, P = 0.017) and had a higher relative maximal aerobic power (MAP) (4.6 ± 0.3 W?kg-1 vs 3.9 ± 0.3 W?kg-1, P = 0.024) compared to non-responders. These results suggest that certain shoe characteristics may influence certain individuals differently because these participants belong to different “functional groups”; certain individuals may respond positively to FLEX, while others may not. Further studies should test this proposed hypothesis.     

Runners do not push off the ground but fall forwards via a gravitational torque

The relationship between the affect and timing of the four forces involved in running (gravity, ground reaction force, muscle force, and potential strain energy) is presented. These forces only increase horizontal acceleration of the centre of mass during stance but not flight. The current hierarchical models of running are critiqued because they do not show gravity, a constant force, in affect during stance. A new gravitational model of running is developed, which shows gravity as the motive force. Gravity is shown to cause a torque as the runner's centre of mass moves forward of the support foot. Ground reaction force is not a motive force but operates according to Newton's third law; therefore, the ground can only propel a runner forward in combination with muscle activity. However, leg and hip extensor muscles have consistently proven to be silent during leg extension (mid-terminal stance). Instead, high muscle-tendon forces at terminal stance suggest elastic recoil regains most of the centre of mass's height. Therefore, the only external motive force from mid-terminal stance is gravity via a gravitational torque, which causes a horizontal displacement. The aim of this paper is to establish a definitive biomechanical technique (Pose method) that is easily taught to runners (Romanov, 2002): falling forwards via a gravitational torque while pulling the support foot rapidly from the ground using the hamstring muscles.